


Can you imagine it?

by cornfritter



Category: Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Genre: Dwemer (Elder Scrolls), Dwemer Dovahkiin | Dragonborn, Gen, Probably inaccurate Elder Scrolls lore
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-27
Updated: 2021-02-27
Packaged: 2021-03-19 04:35:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 512
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29745087
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cornfritter/pseuds/cornfritter
Summary: Nicodemos has no memory of what came before Helgen. He can only scavenge the crumbling remains of Dwemer strongholds, can only dig through the empty homes and barren cities. Also, Marcurio's there.Inspired by Marcurio's dialogue in the Dwemer ruins.
Relationships: Male Dovahkiin | Dragonborn & Marcurio
Kudos: 1





	Can you imagine it?

**Author's Note:**

> i don't know aaany lore about dwemer besides what i've watched in two videos, but marcurio's dialogue kept sticking in my head - i have a longer form story with a dwemer dragonborn, but idk if that will ever be finished/published, so i thought i'd publish this old drabble instead, since I found it the other day and actually quite liked it.

Nicodemos rifled through the cluttered bronze shelf on the far end of the chamber. Marcurio was showing a surprising amount of interest in the various ducts and pipes crossing the ceiling and walls of the ruins. “I thought you hated ruins. And caves,” Nicodemos said absently. He picked up a jar which was surprisingly airtight. From the looks of it, the Falmer hadn’t been putting it to use. He twisted the top open and a waft of musty, fetid air puffed into his face, making him gag. “This place is a little bit of both.”

“Well, Nordic ruins really aren’t anything but tombs. What man—or mer—actually wants to crawl through dusty crypts full of restless Draugr?” Marcurio replied, scrutinizing one of the Centurions that had nearly vaporized him moments before. “These Dwemer ruins are fascinating. Though why they decided to rely on machines rather than magic is beyond me.”

Nicodemos upended the jar, and a little Dwemer talisman fell out, a simply molded head with the angular, braided beard characteristic of the Dwemer adornments. “To be fair, the second they did get involved with magic and the gods and such, they were wiped off the face of Nirn.” he said tritely, pocketing the talisman and leaving the remaining struts spilled out on the table. He knelt next to a locked gate hidden hear the Falmer huts, hands automatically going through the motions of getting it open.

“Not all of them. A living Dwemer was once discovered in Morrowind. Can you imagine it, being the last surviving member of your race?” Marcurio asked.

Nico’s fingers froze around the lockpick, forcing so much tension into it that it broke inside the lock. “Where was that?” Nico didn’t exactly come from a well-connected background, but the last living Dwemer being found…he would have heard about that, wouldn’t he? News like that would have sunk into the slum districts one way or another, especially with the Cyrodilic college just a scant few blocks away.

“Morrowind, around the third era. Unfortunately, no one knows where he is or if he’s still alive, or if they do, that information isn't especially relevant to Skyrim’s news couriers.”  
Nico sat silently before the gate, head spinning. If there was another Dwemer out there, perhaps he could find out why he had remained while his people vanished. Perhaps he was not so alone on Nirn. If he could find this mer, he would not be so cursedly alone, as the least he could hope for from the mer was the companionship between two members of a race from a bygone era…

“Are you planning on getting every single piece of treasure in this ruin?” Marcurio asked wryly. Nico jerked to attention, realizing that his hands were still at the lock (despite the broken lockpick) and aching quite badly.

“Broke my last lockpick. I might come back to it later, once all this is done with,” Nico said. He got up from his knees quickly and strode down into the hallway, alert for any other Falmer they would encounter.

**Author's Note:**

> videos mentioned in previous notes:  
> "Maybe the Dwemer Did Not Make a Mistake" from FudgeMuppet  
> "Turns out the Dwemer Still Are Alive" from TheEpicNate315


End file.
